Lamp.



H. R. VAN VLECK.

LAMP.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE3,1913.

1,078,389, Patented Nov. 11, 1913.

HORACE RUSS VAN VLEtZK, OF MONTCLAIR, NEW JERSEY.

LAMP.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 1 1, 1913.

Application filed June 3, 1913. Serial No. 771,384.

T all whom 2'25 may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE Ross VAN VLEoK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Montclair, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lamps, of

- which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to lamps and particularly to lamps adapted for use on selfpropelled vehicles.

It is now common practice to employ incandescent electric lights in the lamps used on auton'iobiles, these electric lamps being supplied with current from a suitable generator carried by the car. It frequently happens, however, that some defect in the electric system, the generator, the wiring or some other part, disables the system so that the electric lamps cannot be used. In cars equipped only with such electric lights, the interruption of the supply of current to the lights due to one cause or another has frequently caused very considerable inconvenience.

The aim of the present invention is to provide mechanism whereby this objectionable characteristic of the lighting equipment now commonly in use may be removed without adding materially to the expense of the equipment or to the weight of the apparatus which must be carried upon thecar.

To this end, the invention involves the provision of a lamp for use on an automobile for lighting both electrically and by gas,

the lamp being providcd with a suitable gas burner in cooperative relation to a reflector and also with means for supporting an incandescent lamp bulb of the type now commonly employed. To facilitate retaining the dimensions now commonly employed in lamps of this character, the burner for. the gas is so mounted within the casing of the lamp that when in operative position it projects into space normally occupied by the re fiector employed in connection with the electric lamp .and t-hisburner is arranged to be movable to an inoperative position in which it lies beyond the reflector for the electric lamp. This latter reflector is detachably mounted within the casing of the lamp in position to cooperate with an electric lamp bulb so that if the electric lighting system were to become disabled in any way, this re fiector and the electric 1am could be innuediately withdrawn from t e casing of the lamp topermit the gas burner to be turned to its operative position and employed in connection with its reflector to furnish the necessary light.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in Which-- Figure 1 is a central section of a lamp constructed in accordance with the invent-ion and Fig. 2 is a front view of the lamp with the door broken away in art.

Referring to these drawings, the lamp consiSts of a metallic casing 3 of any suitable character having the rear thereof closed at 4 and having a door 5 at the front consisting of a metallic frame and glass 6 held therein. The door 5 is preferably hinged as shown at 7. The construction in these respects is similar to that employed in lamps of this type heretofore. At the rear end of the casing is a reflector S- of the type commonly employed in connection with acetylene gas burners. The burner is shown at 9, it being in its operative position in Fig. 1 and its inoperative position in Figi l. The burner is carried by a tubular member 10, a portion of which has a conical exterior surface 11. This conical portion 11 fits within a si arly shaped opening in the cylindrical POIIh/Il of a standard 12 which is secured upon and rises from the bottom of the casing of the lamp. A nut 13 screwed upon the end of the membcrll) holds the latter in place upon the standard 12 and maintains the conical surfaces 11 in close contact so as to prevent the escape of gas at this point. The standard 12 has a tubular opening therein which communicates with a tube 14 passing through the exterior of the casing of the lamp for co action with the usual flexible tube 15 whereby gas is carried from the. storage tank to the lamp. hen the burner J is in the position in which it is shown in Fig. 1, it may be employed in connection with the reflector 8 in .the manner usual in such gas lamps. Also the manner in which the burner is n'iounted upon the standard 12 permits of moving the burner to the inoperative position ilrwhich it is shown in Fig. 2 to provide space for the reception of an electric lamp and a reflectcr to be employed therewith.

A second reflector 16 is employed for coaction with an incandescent electric lamp 17. PH tel-ably the lamp 1? is supported directly upon the reflector 16 and for this purpose a socket 18 is secured directly to reflectqli at the center thereof, this socket being adapted to receive the base of lamp 17. The reflector 16 is detachably mounted upon the casing of the lamp. To facilitate this, the material at the edge of the reflector 16 is turned outwardly to form a flange 19 and this flange is slightly curved transversely.

Bolts 20 pass through openings in an annulus 21 forming part of the frame of the lamp casing 3 and the threaded ends of these bolts 20 project through openings in the flange 19. Nuts 22 preferably provided with knurled exteriors are screwed up upon the shanks of the bolts 20 into contact with the flange 19 to secure the reflector 16 detachably in position. Because of the curvature of the flange 19, when nuts 22 are tightened up in position they flatten the flange 19 more or less so that the nuts are constantly under stress and the danger of the nuts becoming loosened is materially reduced.

Current is supplied to the electric lamp 17 by means of wires 23 connected to terminals in a plug 24 which is adapted to be received in a suitable receptacle 25 mounted upon the casing of the lamp, the several wires 23 being connected to terminals in the plug which are spaced apart to insulate them one from another. The receptacle 25 is provided with similarly located insulated terminals therein, and wires 26 are connected to these ter-.

minals so as to carry current thereto. Preferably the lamp 17 has a high and a low candle-power filament, 28 and 27 respectively, in the same bulb, and the cables 23 and 26 include three wires for carrying current to and from these two filaments. In this case, the three wires forming the cable 26 would be carried to the dash of the car and connected to the terminals of a suitable switch, so that one or the other filament could be used as desired, or the lamp extinguished from the dash of the car. In order to permit of using two filaments in this way, the socket 18 must be provided with. three terminals adapted to coact with three terminals upon the base of the lamp 17. These terminals preferably consist of the usual threaded metallic sleeve and two contacts at the end of this sleeve insulated from each other and from the sleeve. One of these three terminals carries the current to both of the filaments 27 and 28, and the opposite end of each filament is connected to one of the other terminals. This permits of using one or the other of the two filaments at will and makes provision in the same lamp for the low candle-power light required in cities and also the high candle-power light desir able when traveling in the country.

Fig. 1 shows the parts in the positions which they would normally occupy, except that the burner 9 is indicated by dotted lines in its operative position, whereas it would normally be in the inoperative position shown in Fig. 2. If any portion of the electric lighting equipment ere to become disabled, so as to render the bulb 17 useless, it would only be necessary to open the door 5 of the lamp, remove the reflector 16 by loosening the nuts 22, and turn the burner 9 to its upright, operative position. In removing the reflector, the bulb 17 would be removed with it and also the cable 23 and plug 24, the latter being detached from the socket 25. This having been done and the burner being placed in the operative position, the supply of gas to the burner may be turned on and the burner employed with the rear reflector 8 in affording the necessary light.

Another feature of the invention which is of importance is that the construction is such that the invention may be readily applied to gas lamps now in common use, in order to equip those lamps for use as both gas and electric lamps. In such lamps, the burners 9 are commonly so mounted that they may be readily detached and in place of them a burner such as that described above and shown in the drawings may be substituted, so as to make provision for movement of the burner to operative and inoperative positions. The reflector 16, with the socket attached thereto, may be readily mounted within the forward end of a gas lamp of the type now commonly employed. The shaping of the reflector 16 so as to provide the flange 19 at the edge thereof for coaction with the frame of the lamp at its forward edge greatly facilitates the detachable mounting of the reflector for the electric lamp, with the socket attached thereto, within the casing of the lamp.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new therein and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A lamp comprising the combination of a. casing, a reflector therein, a burner mounted in front of the reflector, connections to the burner, a second reflector rcmovably mounted within the casing in front of the first reflector, means for supporting an electric lamp in front of the second reflector and wires leading to said lamp, substantially as set forth.

2. A lamp comprising the combination of a casing, a reflector therein, a burner mounted in front of the reflector, connect-ions to the burner, a second. reflector removably mounted within the casing in front of the first reflector, a socket secured to the second reflector, an electric lamp mounted in the socket and wires leading to the socket, substantially as set forth.

3. A lamp comprising the combination of a casing, a reflector therein, a burner in front of the reflector, means for supporting and carrying gas to the burner arranged to permit movement of the burner to operative and inoperative positions, a second reflector removably mounted in the casing in front of the first reflector, means for supporting an electric lamp in front of the second refleet-or and Wires leading to said lamp, sub stantially as set forth.

4. A lamp comprisin the combination of a casing, a reflector tiercin, a burner in front of the reflector, means for supporting and carrying gas to the burner arranged to permit movement of the burner to operative and inoperative positions, a second reflector removably mounted in the casing in front of the first reflector, a socket secured to the second reflector, an electric lamp mounted in the socket and Wires leading to the socket, substantially as set forth.

. 5. A lamp comprising the combination of a casing, a reflector therein, a second rcflector, means for dctachably mounting the second reflector Within the casing in front of the first reflector, a burner mounted upon the casing in front of the first reflector and projecting into space occupied by the removable second refiector, said burner being movable to inoperative position to permit inserting the second reflector, and an electric lamp mounted in 006 erative relation. to the second reflector, substantially as set forth.

6. A lamp comprising a substantially cylindrical casing closed at its rear end and open at its front end, a reflector stationariiy mounted Within the casing close to the closed rear end thereof, means for sup porting a burner in front of said reflector, a second reflector having the material at the edge thereof turned outwardly to form a flange, said second reflector being adapted to fit within the casing in front ofthe first reflector with its flange a ainst the front edge of the casing, detacha le bolts assing through said flange and engaging t 0 casing, a support for an electric lamp mounted on the second reflector, and a door for the front end of the casing adapted to coast with the casing and to overlie the flange of the second reflector, substantially set forth.

This specification signed and witnessel this 31st day of May, 1913.

HORACE VAN VLECK. Witnesses:

D. S. EDMONDS, J. F. Comma. 

